Washing machines



Nov. 15, 1955 J. F. BELAIEFF WASHING MACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet l FiledDeC. l2, 195?.

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5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Deo. 12, 1952 Nov. 15, 1955 J. F. BELAIEFF2,723,550

WASHING MACHINES Filed Deo. l2, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 @y @jm/magg UnitedStates Patent WASHING MACHINES James Frank Belaieff, Cologny,Switzerland, ass'ignor to Societe Anonyme des Usines Jean Gall'ay,Geneva, Switzerland, a corporation of'Switzerland Application December12, 1952, Serial No. 325,683 Claims priority, application SwitzerlandNovember 7, 1952 1 Claim. (Cl. 68-184) The present invention concerns awashing machine with a xed tub having vertical side walls between whichextends at least one third wall forming the bottom of the said tub. Awater circulating pump which at normal rates gives a head of at least1.75 kg. per sq. cm. and delivers a volume of water between 1 and 1.5times the volume of water contained in the tub per minute is arrangedwith its intake immediately adjacent the bottom wall, and at least one,or preferably two, nozzles discharge the water owing from the pumpbeneath the normal level of the Water in the tub so as to impart to thewater and the wash contained in the tub a general movement of rotationand, on the other hand, to create between the wash and the water arelative movement producing a washing effect. A removable grid isarranged in the bottom wall, upstream from the pump intake, so that itis swept by the stream of water discharged by the said nozzle ornozzles, and the pump intake is readily accessible from inside the tub,once the grid is removed, so as to allow it to be cleaned.

The accompanying drawing illustrates two embodiments of the washingmachine according to the invention by way of example.

Fig. l is a sectional elevation of Vone `embodiment of the machine.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same machine showing a partial sectionthrough 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a partly sectional elevation, similar to that shown in Fig. 1of another embodiment.

The washing machine shown in Figs. l and `2 hask a fixed tub 1 arrangedinside a casing 2 resting on a base 3, of rectangular shape. This tub 1has four vertical and parallel walls 4, 5, 7, 8, between which extendsla third wall forming the bottom 6 -of the tub. The sides 7, 8 arejoined to the bottom 6 by curved part 9. The walls i and 5 are joined tothe said bottom by curved parts 10.

A circulating pump 11 is arranged inside the casing 2 below the tub 1,this pump being designed to give, at normal rates, a head of vat least1.75 kg. per sq. cm. and a delivery between l and 1.5 times fhe volumeof water normally contained in the tub per minute. 12 indicates thelevel of the water in the tub during the washing operation. The intakeof the pump is shown at 13 and is, as may be seen in the drawing,immediately adjacent to the bottom 6 of the tub. The central part of thebottom of the tub is provided with a removable grid 14 arranged so thatit forms part of the said bottom. Below the grid is situated a smallchamber 15 in which there is mounted an electric heating element 16. Thebottom of the chamber 15 opens directly into the intake 13 of the pump.This pump is of the centrifugal type and runs at relatively high speed.lt is a well known fact that, when pumps of this type are used tocirculate the water in washing machines, textile iibres and otherimpurities tend to catch in the intake 13 and to gradually obstruct it.With the arrangement shown in the drawing,

the intake 13 is readily accessible for cleaning purposes.

By simply removing the grid 14 momentarily, the intake 13 may easily becleaned when necessary.

' tion 32"',

Nozzles 17 and 18 are arranged with their discharge` openings beneaththe normal level of the water in the tub and with their axes parallel tothe walls 4 and 5 and adjacent to the side 7 of the tub. These nozzlesdischarge the water, which comes from the pump through the tube 19,vertically downwards, so that the stream of water runs first along theside 7, then along the bottom 6 and then along the side 8.

The upper end of the tub hasy an opening 20 which may be'closed by a lid21 during the washing operation. This lid is articulated at 22.

Pipe 23 serves to lill the tub with water to the level 12. This pipe isconnected to a hot water supply, which is not shown, and is removed oncethe tub has been lilled.

24 indicates a pipe connected to the output of the pump 11 and branchesoff at 25. One of the branches, 26, is led out of the machine anddischarges at 27 into a sink 2,8 situated at a certain height above thelevel 12. The other branch is constituted by the tube 19.

The machine comprises means which allows the flow of water through thetubes 19 and 26 to be controlled and which thus enables the working ofthe machine to be regulated. This means comprises two cams 29, 30 keyedto a common shaft 31, which can be actuated by the operator by means ofa lever 32. The rst of these cams controls the ow through the tube 19and the second controls the ow through the tube 26.

When the lever 32 is in the position shown in .the drawing, the cam 29leaves the passage through the tube 19 entirely free, whereas the tube26 is completely constricted by the cam 30, so that no water can owthrough it. This is the position of the lever corresponding to thewashing operation.

When the lever 32 is in the position indicated by 32 in Fig. '2, the cam29 completely constricts the tube 19 and therefore cuts ot the flow ofwater to the nozzles. The cam 30 also interrupts the passage through thetube 26. When the lever is moved from 32 to 32', the cam 29 graduallycloses ',the'passage through the tube 19, and the consequence of this isan increasing pressure drop in the tube 19 and a correspondingdiminution of the speed of the stream of Water issuing from the nozzles,this speed diminishing to zero for the position 32 of the lever. For allthe intermediate positions between 32 and 32', the cam 30 closes theevacuating tube.

When the lever 32 is in the position indicated by 32", the cam 29 stopsthe ow of water to the nozzles, whereas the evacuating tube 26 is openedby the cam 30. In the intermediate positions, between 32' and 32", thecam 29 constantly stops the flow of Water to the nozzles and the cam 30gradually opens the evacuating tube 26 until it is fully open.

If the lever is moved from the position 32 to the posithe cam 30gradually opens the evacuating tube 26 until it is fully open, andmeanwhile the ow of water to the nozzles through the tube 19 iscontinued.

The machine described above functions as follows:

Supposing the lever 32 is in the position shown in the drawing andcorresponding to the washing operation.

The tub having been filled with Water to the level 12, the pumpcirculates the water in a closed circuit as follows:`

The water discharged by the pump through the pipe 24 ows through thetube 19 to the nozzles, the position of the cam 29 being such that thewater can iiow freely through the said tube 19. The position 32 of thelever corresponds to the maximum discharge through the nozzles and tothe maximum speed of the stream issuing from these nozzles. If the lever32 is gradually moved from the position indicated above towards theposition 32', the cam 29 gradually closes the passage through the tube19, thus producing an increasing pressure drop and a correspondingdiminution in the speed of the stream issuing from the nozzles. Thelever 32 being set in the desired position, and the tub being filledwith water into which the washing has been put, it will be seen that themass of water and washing will acquire a rotary motion in a verticalplane parallel to the walls 4 and 5 of the tub, that is, in the plane ofthe figure. This rotary motion is due to the combined actions of thedynamic effect of the stream of water discharged at relatively highspeed by the nozzles and of the suction produced in the neighborhood ofthe latter, which act in the fashion of an ejector on the surroundingmass of water. This ejector action has the effect of drawing the waterin the upper part of the tub down towards the nozzles, whereas thestream of water issuing from the nozzles tends to drive the water belowthe nozzles downwards towards the bottom of the tub. What is remarkable,however, is that the rotary motion of the water and the washingpractically does not entangle the Washing. In addition, it can easily beseen that an energetic washing effect is produced by the fact that everytime a part of a rotating article of washing comes near the nozzles, itis brusquely drawn down towards the discharge openings of the latter,owing to the suction effect described above. This brusque movement hasthe effect of producing a relative movement between the remainder of thearticle and the surrounding mass of water. Now, it is precisely thisrelative movement which produces an eicient washing action. In this way,a relative movement is produced between the washing and the waterwithout mechanical means such as agitators or rotary blades and thisprevents the wash from being harmed. In addition, by regulating thepressure of the water flowing to the nozzles 17 in the manner described,and consequently controlling the force of the jet issuing from the saidnozzles, it is possible to control the rotary motion of the water andthe suction effect on the wash in the neighborhood of the nozzles,according to the quality of the articles of washing, that is, accordingto whether delicate articles of linen or bed sheets are being washed.

It may be noted that the various positions which the lever may occupybetween 32 and 32 are those which correspond to this possibility ofcontrolling the washing operation.

When the washing operation is over, the wash is rinsed and at the sametime the water is evacuated by moving the lever to the position 32"'.This has the effect of allowing part of the water delivered by the pumpto ow into the evacuating tube to be discharged at 27. At the same timeclean water is caused to oW into the tub through r the hose 23, thequantity of clean water introduced corresponding to the quantitydischarged through the tube 26. The nearer the lever 32 approaches theposition 32" the greater is the quantity of water owing into thedischarge tube 26 compared to the quantity which flows back to the tubthrough the tube 19 and the nozzles. The various positions of the leverbeyond the position 32 towards the position 32 therefore correspond tothe control of the rinsing operation, combined with the simultaneousevacuation of the rinsing water.

When the wash has been rinsed, the ow of clean water through the hose 23is cut off and the lever 32 is brought to the position 32, whichcorresponds to the complete evacuation of the tub. When the tub isempty, the lever is brought to the complete cut off position, which isposition 32.

It may be noted that the stream of water issuing from the nozzles andsweeping across the grid 14 prevents the wash from remaining stuck tothis grid owing to the suction of the pump.

During the Washing operation, the lever 32, instead of being set in theposition shown in the drawing, may be given a position which isintermediate between the positions 32 and 32"', on condition that thedischarge end 27 of the evacuating tube is placed as shown at 27', thatis,

so as to bring the Water back to the tub in the form ot' a jet strikingthe surface of the water rotating in the tub in such a manner as toproduce a supplementary washing action, by imparting to the articles ofwashing a sudden relative motion in relation to the surrounding water,such as that produced by the stream issuing from the nozzles asdescribed. By varying the position of the lever between the positions 32and 32"', the action of the jet issuing from the tube 26 at 27 can beregulated. Means could be provided to ensure that the discharge of Waterat 27', when it is used, is always given the same predetermineddirection giving the maximum washing effect.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 3 the tub is provided with an overflowopening 33 situated above the level 12. This opening communicates withan overflow duct 34 leading to the low pressure chamber 35 of an ejectorinserted in the evacuating duct 26. When the water coming from the pumpflows through the nozzle 36 of the ejector, it produces a certainsuction in the chamber 35. The purpose of this arrangement is toproduce, by means of the suction in the chamber 35, an energeticevacuating effect whenever the level of the water in the tub reaches theopening 33. In this embodiment it is unnecessary to ensure that, duringthe rinsing operation, the amount of water flowing into the tub throughthe hose 23 (see Fig, 1) remains equal to or is less than the amountdischarged at 27, as all excess liquid will automatically be sent to thedischarge through the opening 33 and the duct 34.

As will be appreciated, the machines described above are extremelysolidly built, function in an absolutely reliable manner and give a veryeffective washing action, without deterioration or undue wear of thegoods washed, owing to the total absence of all moving mechanical partsand to the perfectly smooth inner surface of the tub. It is water alonewhich produces the washing effect, and that in a manner which can becontrolled.

What I claim is:

In a washing machine, the combination of a housing including a sideWall, a tube in said housing, a pump provided in the housing and havingan inlet in commu nication with the bottom of said tub, a couplingprovided on the outlet of said pump, a pair of flexible hoses connectedto said coupling, one of said hoses discharging into said tub and theother hose being adapted to discharge selectively into the tub and intoa drain, intermediate portions of said hoses being juxtaposed anddisposed in contact with the surface of a xed part of the machine, ashaft rotatably mounted in and extending through said side Wall, acontrol lever provided on said shaft exteriorly of the side wall, and apair of cams provided on said shaft interiorly of the side wall, saidcams being operatively engageable with the juxtaposed portions of therespective hoses for pressing the same against the surface of said fixedpart to restrict the flow of liquid therethrough, said cams having hoseengaging portions offset circumferentially relative to each other onsaid shaft, whereby to facilitate flow of liquid through either hose andstoppage of ow in the other.

References Cited inthe le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 111,176Churchman Jan. 24, 187| 129,961 Johnstone July 30, 1872 408,690 BurtonAug. 13, 1889 446,051 Young Feb. 10, 1891 1,382,992 Lombard June 28,1921 1,564,760 Culver Dec. 8, 1925 1,775,554 Dehle Sept. 9, 19301,909,487 Cowles May 16, 1933 2,005,015 Traudt June 18, 1935 2,551,379La Raus May 1, 1951 2,633,726 Rand Apr. 7, 1953

